Though
Dick Clark isn’t writing this, hopefully you’ll still find yourself
entertained! That’s right, it’s a loaded, jam-packed New Year’s Rockin’ Blog.
- For
those wondering, the boys basketball poll on our homepage is indeed two weeks
old. The Indiana Basketball Coaches’ Association (IBCA), while it conducts a
girls poll, does not take a poll over Christmas and New Year’s, to my
understanding, for the boys. You may still find the “Next Game” feature
helpful, as it is up to date, as is the current record. I know this, because I
did it myself a few hours ago.
- As a
reminder, the Jan. issue of HSSTM hits newsstands this Friday, Jan. 4. It will
be available online before that, so make sure to sign up for our free online
subscription.
- While
watching the New England Patriots defeat the New York Giants on Saturday night,
I started thinking about perfection and how significant it really is.
Obviously, the Patriots have three more games before they would reach an
unblemished mark of 19-0, but the historical implications of this are, needless
to say, huge. It got me thinking: which teams in boys and girls basketball,
respectively, were the last to go undefeated and capture a state championship? If you know, well, let me know.
- I
believe Mind of McConnell mentioned this last week, but how impressive are the
Cathedral boys looking this young basketball season? On Saturday the Irish
defeated Howe and standout Larry Stone’s amazing 40-point performance in 100-83
win on the road to improve to 6-0 this season. Cathedral features a
well-balanced attack that routinely puts several players in double figures. For
example, against Howe, Jarrett Hamilton put in 24, Kelsey Barlow had 23, David
McMahan dropped 15, Patrick Paligraf answered the test with 12, and Sean
Esposito chipped in 10. Keep an eye out for Cathedral as the season progresses.
- Last
week at the Decatur Central Hawk Invite, I watched what I believe to be one of
the top young girls prospects in the area: Decatur’s Diana Jovanovic.
Jovanovic, just a sophomore, was all over the floor. At one point, I counted
four consecutive rebounds (at both ends of the floor) in a second quarter surge
that ignited Decatur to a win over Arsenal Tech in the opening game of the
tourney. Jovanovic finished with 17 points on the day as well. At 5-foot-9, she’s
a real inside threat for the 12-3 Hawks, a team on the rise.
- Speaking
of teams on the rise, keep an eye on Center Grove. Joe Lentz’ girls are young
and Lentz has adapted his style of play to this current group, which is vastly
different that the team that lost on a buzzer beater to Class 4A state
runner-up Columbus East at semistate last season. The Trojans are 8-3 and now
ranked in the top 20. And they are certainly learning how to play efficiently and
effectively. Case in point: after losing to Franklin 53-50 on Nov. 16, Center
Grove came back and defeated the Grizzly Cubs 11 days later, 60-29. The Trojans
also feature wins over ranked opponents Martinsville, Columbus East and
Bloomington South.
Posted by: Cam on Monday, December 31, 2007
You may not be Dick Clark, but that's a good thing. In fact, if they actually put him on the air tonight, I may re-read this to stay awake until midnight! Being from the south side of Indy, I'm well aware of the talented girls teams at Decatur Central and Center Grove. HSSTM is right to keep an eye on them come tournament time.
Posted by: Liam on Monday, December 31, 2007
cathedral is getting some notice in the polls, but not much in the press..i think the fighting irish are a very strong team and deserve more recognition. they have many great players, including kelsey barlow..here come the irish!
Posted by: Gary on Monday, December 31, 2007
Great question on the last undefeated teams. Hopefully, someone can report back on that. A perfect season is something to be admired, but I believe the Patriots, should they go 19-0, will never be seen as a perfect team due to the video scam against the Jets. Sad really, that a team so great will be thought of this way.
Posted by: Pats Frauds on Monday, December 31, 2007
I love how the media has just swept this whole cheating scandal under the rug since the Patriots keep winning. Am I a Colts fan? Sure, but even if two of Brady's touchdowns from that Jets game were due to cheating, the record should still be Peyton's!
Posted by: Kyle I. on Monday, December 31, 2007
Here's a question...who would you put at No. 1 since the boys poll has been delayed due to the holidays?